Again and again public opinion polls make clear that New Yorkers consider the congestion price scheme a regressive tax and want to hear about any and all alternatives before getting hit with another expense they cannot afford.

The members of the Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission owe New Yorkers a fiduciary duty to examine all traffic mitigation alternatives and to give each and every proposal a fair and proper hearing.

The most recent poll, the November 19, 2007 Q-Poll from Quinnipiac University, found that opposition to the “congestion pricing plan has grown to 61-33% among New York City voters.”

In this latest survey, voters in Queens oppose congestion pricing, 65-29%; in Brooklyn 63-31%; in Staten Island 63-32%; in The Bronx 70-24%. This time even Manhattanites rejected the congestion tax, 47-46%.

See news coverage on the November 19 Q-Poll:See news coverage on the November 19 Q-Poll:

In, New poll shows 61% of city voters opposed to congestion pricing, The Daily News reports: “Opposition to Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan is growing among city voters - even those in Manhattan who would expect to gain the most from having less traffic.....Although voters in the other boroughs have always been solidly against the mayor's plan, 47% of Manhattan voters are against it - up from 36% in August......Congestion pricing support fell even if the money it raised would help forestall MTA fare hikes, the poll found.”
(November 20, 2007) http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/11/20/2007-11-20_new_poll_shows_61_of_city_voters_opposed-1.html

“Overall, only 33% of New York City voters support the plan, the poll shows,” reported the New York Sun in, Poll: Support For Congestion Pricing Falling, which also noted the marked increase in opposition to the congestion tax among Manhattan voter: “Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan is facing growing opposition, with more Manhattan voters opposing than supporting it, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released yesterday.” It explained: “The proportion of registered voters opposing congestion pricing rose to 47% from 36% in August, while those supporting the plan fell to 46% from 54%.”
(November 20, 2007) http://www.nysun.com/article/66706

“With the debate over a transit fare hike heating up, opposition to Mayor Michael Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan is spreading to Manhattan, where residents had been solidly behind the proposal, according to a new poll,” reports Newsday. “In barely three months, the number of Manhattan residents who support Bloomberg's plan to charge motorists to enter the borough dropped from 54 percent in August to 46 percent this month, a Quinnipiac University poll found.”
(November 20, 2007) http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-nycong205468933nov20,0,938338.story

New York One News reports: “It appears fewer New Yorkers are supporting Mayor Michael Bloomberg's congestion pricing proposal.” The report, Poll: Fewer New Yorkers Supporting Congestion Pricing, notes, “According to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Monday, 61 percent of New York City voters are now against the plan to charge drivers to enter Midtown Manhattan during certain peak hours. That number is up four percent from August and nine percent from July.”
(November 20, 2007) http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=75768

“Some 61 percent of New Yorkers are now against Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposal to charge drivers to enter Midtown Manhattan during peak hours, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Monday.” In Poll: fewer New Yorkers support mayor's congestion pricing proposal, Xinhua News Agency's China View English Language Internet News site also reports, “The number is up 4 percent from August and 9 percent from July......The biggest drop in support is in Manhattan, where only 46 percent support the plan, dropping sharply from 54 percent in August.”
(November 20, 2007) http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/20/content_7108066.htm

From the Gothamist: “Remember when all anyone could talk about was congestion pricing? Well, now that the city is officially in holiday gridlock mode, Quinnipiac University released a new poll showing growing opposition to congestion pricing, with 61% of New Yorkers against the plan.” In Poll Suggests Waning Support For Congestion Pricing, it recalls: “Back in July, 52% of voters were against congestion pricing, and then that grew to 57% in August. Most notably, the number of Manhattan voters opposing congestion pricing has risen 11%, from 36% in August to 47% in November.”
(November 19, 2003) http://gothamist.com/2007/11/19/poll_suggests_w.php

In Majority of New Yorkers Oppose Pricing Plan, The New York Sun reports: “Opposition to Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion pricing proposal is growing, even as the city has qualified for $354 million of federal funds to implement a pay-to-drive system in Manhattan, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released yesterday. New York voters consider traffic congestion a serious problem, but 57% of voters oppose congestion pricing – up from 52% opposing the road fee last month. Manhattan voters still support the proposal, which would charge cars $8 to enter Manhattan south of 86th Street, by a margin of 54% to 36%. The bulk of the federal dollars that would fund transportation improvements in New York City are contingent upon implementing some sort of pricing plan.”
(August 31, 2007)
http://www.nysun.com/article/61722

In Feds meddling in congestion pricing: poll, Crain’s New York Business.com reports: “A majority of New York City voters say the federal government’s promise to give the city $354 million in transit funding only if a congestion pricing plan is approved constitutes meddling, according to a new poll.
Only about $10.4 million of the total federal monies would go toward Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s traffic proposal, yet the U.S. Department of Transportation won’t give the city any of the funds if the state legislature fails to give its stamp of approval for a trial run of the congestion proposal.
Fifty-one percent of New York City voters surveyed by Quinnipiac University say the promise of federal funding with conditions is “federal meddling in a municipal decision.”
(August 30, 2007)
http://www.newyorkbusiness.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070830/FREE/70830002/1066/newsletter01

From The Daily Politics (The Daily News): “Brooklyn Councilman Lew Fidler used the Q poll’s results to slam the city/state congestion pricing commission as a “sham,” given that the majority of its members are predisposed in favor of Bloomberg's proposal in spite of the fact that a majority of residents in every borough but Manhattan oppose it.”
(August 31, 2007)
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2007/08/poll_position.html

From The New York Press: “A brand new Quinnipiac Poll finds once again that outer borough residents are overwhelmingly opposed to Mayor Mike Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan.” in Like Congestion Pricing? You Probably Live In Manhattan
(August 30, 2007)
http://www.nypress.com/blogx/display_blog.cfm?bid=96320598

Incredulously – maybe not – the congestion tax proponents argue members of the public lack enough information about congestion pricing to form an opinion; they argue the poll results would change. In fact, informed voters oppose congestion pricing. Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free finds the suggestion by tax advocates – that our citizens lack the capacity to know what makes sense – more than offensive but obnoxious and telling of dismissive attitude shared by many congestion tax proponents towards overtaxed New Yorkers.

Most New Yorkers know a bad deal when they see it. The more New Yorkers learn about congestion pricing, the more they see how rotten it is to tax New Yorkers to address Midtown and downtown Manhattan traffic when better ways exist.

Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free respects the public and endeavors to share information about congestion pricing, its pitfalls and the many sound alternatives. Please peruse this website and if you need more information, contact Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free at KeepNYCFree@gmail.com for assistance.